Luis Alejo Named Mayor of Watsonville

Watsonville’s city council selected Luis Alejo to serve as the city’s next mayor. Alejo, the son of migrant workers, was born and raised in Watsonville and is running for the the 28th District Assembly seat being vacated by Anna Caballero. He was elected in a 5-2 vote. At the same time, Nancy Bilicich was elected vice mayor of the city with a 6-1 vote.
Both elections were opposed by Councilmember Emilio Martinez, who wrote an editorial in Saturday’s Register Pajaronian calling on Watsonville to change the way it chooses its leaders. Martinez wants the “mayor to be elected by the citizens of Watsonville, not selected by a few.” He argues that the current form of city government hold neither the council nor the city manager accountable. Citing the need to get to get Watsonville “back on a good economic track,” he described a recent decision to hire consultants to “brand the city” in order to attract new jobs. Even Alejo, who was then vice mayor, said that he had to receive a marketing tool that would help generate new jobs, instead of just a new logo for the city. The consultants cost Watsonville $34,000.
He goes on to say that while Salinas, in Monterey County, was able to attract an electric car manufacturer, Watsonville has “the highest unemployment rate in the tri-county area, an empty downtown, and nothing in the wings that will attract new businesses that create jobs.” He blames the problem on a lack of accountability directly to the constituents.
Martinez may have lost in his attempt to change the way Watsonville is run, but he did point to the difficult road ahead for new mayor Luis Alejo. The city is already planning to close municipal offices during Thanksgiving week and for two weeks at the years’ end to help cover the budget shortfall. Read more at the Santa Cruz Sentinel.